January 2013

Letter from the President – January 2013
by Paul Robear

Greetings!
It was in 1978 that Dr. Felicitas Goodman officially established the Cuyamungue Institute, making this year our 35th anniversary! Felicitas’ New Mexico adventure began in 1960 when she traveled with friends from Ohio State University to Santa Fe. She soon fell in love with the land and the local Native American culture. With plans to return every summer, she purchased 280 acres in 1963 in the area known as Cuyamungue. The name means “place where the rocks slip” and is the site of several ancient pueblos. In 1965, accompanied by friends and relatives, she chose a site to build, and the first adobe building was erected. In 1978, Felicitas founded the Institute. obtained status as a 501(c)3 non-profit entity, and deeded the land to the Institute. When she retired from Denison University, she continued teaching — able to focus solely on her greatest contribution — at her beloved Institute. Today we continued her ongoing research into expanded states of consciousness and holding workshops using the Cuyamungue Method. We know this field of study is so expansive and wide reaching, that, to quote Karen Carpenter “we’ve only just begun” — and are excited to see where this work can take us all.

So, the work continues. We begin our 35th year knowing we are the latest rung in a long chain extending back to 35,00- year old shamanic traditions. We know this work to be a valuable tool for experiencing direct knowledge, expanding ideas that shape and enliven human consciousness, propel our growth, and spark our creativity.

Join us on this amazing journey! We invite you to participate in our wide assortment of workshops, ask about on-going projects, host an event in your local area, and contribute what you can. Your donations are very much appreciated.

The future begins today — let’s work together to create the world we all want.

In this issue:

We had the delightful opportunity to meet Nancy Maryboy, President of Indigenous Education Institute

Laura and I had the great pleasure to meet Nancy C. Maryboy in Friday Harbor. Nancy is the President and Founder of the Indigenous Education Institute, a non profit organization with the mission of preserving, protecting and applying indigenous knowledge. She has long been working to develop native astronomy educational materials with the World Hope Foundation and the Sun/Earth Connection of NASA. She is an adjunct professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Northern Arizona University, where she is developing an Internet based course of Native American Astronomy. And she is a core member of the Native American Academy, working at the boundaries of traditional indigenous and western science. This led to The Cosmic Serpent Project, a new, collaborative research project, and publication of a book outlining this work. Thank you Nancy for a copy, it will be a welcome new addition to the CI library!

Nancy joined us in December 2012 for her first posture experience, and says she was very inspired and and see many connections to her own work.

More on The Cosmic Serpent Project: Cosmic Serpent explores commonalities between western and native science, taking into account that native cultures have, over millennia, developed ways of knowing that are highly adapted, interconnected, and enduring. Each knowledge system informed the practice of science and its role in society in a fundamental way, and the commonalities provided a framework for developing mutually inclusive learning experiences in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The project recognized previous work that attempted to integrate both systems. Our innovative and collaborative approach explored commonalities between the two systems in the context of informal science education… more

Movie Review: “Shift of the Ages” by Sara Martin
Yesterday in the wee hours of early morning I couldn’t sleep. I lay in bed for awhile, trying to tempt sleep back but it wasn’t interested in me. Eventually I just got up, thinking about getting an early start on my Never Ending To Do List. After making my customary maté latte I shuffled to my desk and began going through emails and then I remembered that I had been meaning to watch this film-Shift of the Ages– but just hadn’t found the time. So, now was a perfect time. No one else was up and I wouldn’t be bothered. I had been keeping up with the progress of the making of this film for several years and was eagerly awaiting its release. And may I simply say thateveryone needs to see this. Yes, I know, there is a plethora of high-quality movies out there that deserve viewing, but this one stands apart in that it truly applies to everyone alive on this planet at this time, and therefore needs to be seen by as many people as possible… Continue to full article

Report from Costa Rica – Meeting Mother Earth by Jane Segleau
I started my shamanical studies over 10 years ago, when I learned to journey using a drum. A friend lent me Ms. Goodman´s book which changed my life as it has touched so many others. I live in Costa Rica, a occasionaly have offered journeying workshops.

Recently in a workshop we experimented with a posture which is found commonly in our museums. Again and again, you can find stautues of women, sitting cross legged or only the open legs up until the knees can be seen. She is beautifully painted, always, on her legs, around her breasts and her face. Her hands are resting on her hips. Another unique characteristic is her headress which opens to the sky, and is empty, forming a kind of cup…. Continue to full article

Matching Donations Update– Report from Laura Lee, CI Director of Outreach and Development

Here’s where we are with our on-going Matching Donation Campaign: Halfway to our $10,000 goal! Contact me with your comments, questions, and suggestions for future campaigns and projects at [email protected].

Thanks again to Barbara and Gerry Clow for their continued support of the Institute with this Campaign, a wonderful opportunity to turn every dollar you donate to the Institute into $2! Here is Barbara Clow’s letter detailing their generous offer Continue here for Barbara Clow’s entire letter

Welcome CI’s New Board Member – Anthropologist Deborah Neff

We are very happy to welcome Deborah Neff to our community, and to the CI Board of Directors. Deborah attended our Initiatory Workshop at CI last October, had beautiful, moving experiences, and immediately saw the connections to her own work with trance states in anthropology. As a Cultural Anthropologist, her focus has been religious studies, trance, and cross-cultural education. Deborah worked with women and Harijan’s (“Untouchables”) in India. She has also worked extensively with Native American cultures, c0-authoring a book with an elder in the Southwest titled “Desert Indian Woman” (Thank you Deborah for a copy of your book — a welcome addition to the CI library!) She is currently moving into a new phase in Applied Developmental Anthropology with a focus on refugee resettlement.

Deborah reports: I am very excited about being on the Board of this fabulous Institute. As an anthropologist and lover of nature, and Santa Fe, the overall experience of the initiation workshop was incredible: from the fresh air amid rolling New Mexican hills, to the most incredible people, who worked together and played together as we shared a deep and powerful ritual process. In addition to resonating with the mission of CI (such as the benefit of communicating with a conscious universe and ancient indigenous ways of seeing), I am very interested in the trance experience,e in doing the postures, how it works, how experiences and overlaps, and why it works the way it does. I am so happy to have learned this new, very old technique of ecstatic trance. I find it relaxing and, well, life changing! I am thrilled to be on this Board and hope I can add something in the way of continuing some of the research Felicitas has begun... Continue

Invest in yourself! Here is the 2013 workshop schedule at the Cuyamungue Institute. Get the jump-start on making your plans to join us this season! Please note a schedule change: The Initiatory Training and Solstice Celebration have been combined.

April 29 – May 10: German Workshop – Ki Salmen is a trainer and teacher for the Felicitas-Goodman Institut in Germany and will host a full week workshop, bringing a group from Germany. Contact Ki

May 3 – 6: Soul Retrieval Workshop – Ki Salmen. In situations of shock, great pain or abuse a person’s life can become so unbearable that soul parts become lost. This work of retrieving soul parts with Body-Postures is a profound self healing process. The exciting news is: you can do it all yourself. More Workshop Information …Contact Ki

June 20 – 23: Solstice Celebration: Initiatory Training Workshop – Paul Robear and Laura Lee. A powerful, compacted introduction to this work. You will be introduced to a succession of trance experiences and initiation. Enjoy the power of the group experience. More Information

July 6: Cuyamungue Explorers Club – This is an afternoon gathering for those who are familiar with the practice of the Cuyamungue Method and want to participate in new posture research and verification. Hosted by Paul Robear and Laura Lee. Contact Paul Robear

July 19 -22 Finding Ecstasy: Applying Your Unique Creative Genius – While Experiencing A Journey Through Self Discovery and Expression using Sacred Postures. Jackie Haworth, Stephanie Stephens, Rae LeCompte. Using the arts to express your experiences will help each of us on our journey through self. You might want to make a mask, write a poem, dance or sing. Follow the path on which your trances lead and be prepared for an adventure. Each of our stories will be woven into the fabric an imaginary tapestry representing how we are each one part of a world community. More Information

August 22 – 25: Authentic Movement & Ecstatic Postures – Bat-Sheva Koren – Authentic Movement creates a space where one can be present in PURE consciousness in the process of transitioning from stillness to movement and back. Holding a Ritual Body Posture facilitated by a rhythm opens an entry into the realm of the Spirit. Both guide our journey to a place where the role of the witness and the mover in the experience may be revealed. If one chooses to listen, the Spirit may guide the experiencing of the alternate reality as complementary to the daily one. Contact Bat-Sheva

August 28 – September 1: Masked Trance Dance – Paul Robear, Laura Lee and Belinda Gore. Adventure into the depth of inspiration and intuitive guidance as we make masks, costumes, and our experiences will create a mythic story and end in a creation a sacred dance . Contact Paul Robear

September 4- 8: Instructor Training and Certification – Belinda Gore and Paul Robear. How to teach the safe and simple six-step process, known as the Cuyamungue Method. Contact Belinda

September 12 – 15:Gathering of the Grandmothers – Susan Bannister. A retreat for the “Grandmothers” (60 and up) of Cuyamungue. Following in the footsteps of Dr. Goodman, this is an opportunity for us as grandmothers to gather to share in the wisdom tradition of women elders. Contact Susan Bannister

October 3 – 6: First Annual Men’s Conclave – Paul Robear. The time has come for the men of the institute to gather and share the power of the Cuyamungue Method as a group. This will the first time in the history of the Institute that an all male event will be conducted at the Institute. Email me directly at [email protected] for more information.

Want to more information? Email us and we will answer your questions and connect you directly with the workshop instructor(s).

Felicitas Goodman, founder of Cuyamungue Institute2014 Centennial Solstice Celebration – June 19th – 22nd
2014 marks the 100th anniversary of Felicitas’ arrival on this planet. We want to mark the year with special, international events at Cuyamungue to honor her life and work, welcoming all cultures, languages and including all those around the world who are carrying on her legacy. Our hope is to come together, both in person and via the Internet, to share stories of Felicitas and what her work means to us. This event is open to all, and we need your ideas and participation. We may need to add temporary accommodations and gathering spaces, and for those who desire more comfortable. private accommodations, the beautiful new Hilton at Buffalo Thunder is a short distance away and very reasonable priced. We can negotiate a group of rooms depending on the demand.

If you are inspired to suggest activities and participate on the committee that plans and executes this event, do let me know. It won’t happen without people stepping forward and making it happen! Email me directly at [email protected]

We need your support! The Cuyamungue Institute, like many non-profit organizations, has limited resources. We are proud of the scope of work we have already accomplished, but this is just the beginning — there is much more to do! Here’s how you can participate:

Be a Volunteer – Ask about existing, on-going projects you can help with. Or suggest projects that you can work on, fund, or both!

Attend workshops at the Institute – Bless yourself and CI Workshop fees directly support maintenance of the land and buildings.

Personal Donations – 100% of your donations and gifts go directly to the Institute, and are tax deductible.

Corporate Donations – Your company can have a tremendous impact. Ask us how we can bring our work to your visionaries and leaders!

Also consider making a donation by clicking here. Ongoing research and new applications of this work is only possible with donations made by people like you. Laura Lee, our Director of Outreach and Development, is available to answer your questions and to provide more information. Contact her at [email protected]

Thanks for reading! Please forward this to your friends and acquaintances who will enjoy learning more about us — and please let me hear from you! I am most happy answer andy and all questions about the Institute or the Cuyamungue Method. We welcome all correspondence. Email me directly at [email protected] .